All 39 DVLA local offices are scheduled for closure by the end of 2013

In July 2012, findings of a public consultation in to the transformation of DVLA were announced. The outcomes of this review determined that transactions and services should be gradually migrated from the existing 39 DVLA Local Offices to a mix of alternative channels. DVLA has started the changes necessary to facilitate the closures of the local offices as a step change towards a digital business.All local offices are scheduled to close in three tranches, these are highlighted below:Date for closure Offices

Birmingham Borehamwood Bristol Cardiff Glasgow Leeds Manchester Newcastle Northampton Nottingham Portsmouth Preston WimbledonChanges that will be introduced before the local offices close include:Extending the existing service for taxing vehicles at Post Office® branches to include taxing Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) and requesting duplicate tax discs.Enhancing the existing Automated First Registration and Licensing scheme to enable tax discs to be distributed from DVLA Swansea direct to customers, dealers and fleet operators.Changes to law that allow newly registered vehicles to be used/driven on the road for up to 14 calendar days from the date of registration without the need to display the tax disc. This mitigates concerns raised by customers around delays in receiving documentation through the post.Centralised the work of 10 area enforcement centres and processes around applying for trade licences at DVLA Swansea.Introduction of centralised postal applications directed to DVLA Swansea including personalised registrations (from 1 July) and first registration applications using V55 forms (from 22 July).Redirecting customer mail to DVLA Swansea for processing, communicating these changes via local office and motor industry representatives.

Driver's caught middle-lane hogging and tailgating face £100 on-the-spot fines and three penalty points under plans due to be unveiled today.

£100 fines for tailgating and hogging the middle lane

Careless drivers who put other road users at risk face on-the-spot penalties under new measures announced today (5 June 2013) by Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond.The changes will give the police powers to issue fixed penalty notices for careless driving, giving them greater flexibility in dealing with less serious careless driving offences - such as tailgating or middle lane hogging - and freeing them from resource-intensive court processes. The fixed penalty will also enable the police to offer educational training as an alternative to endorsement. Drivers will still be able to appeal any decision in court.In addition, existing fixed penalty levels for most motoring offences - including using a mobile phone at the wheel and not wearing a seatbelt - will rise to £100 to bring them into line with the penalties for similar non-motoring fixed penalties.Stephen Hammond said:Careless drivers are a menace and their negligence puts innocent people’s lives at risk. That is why we are making it easier for the police to tackle problem drivers by allowing them to immediately issue a fixed penalty notice rather than needing to take every offender to court.We are also increasing penalties for a range of driving offences to a level which reflects their seriousness and which will ensure that they are consistent with other similar penalty offences.Edmund King, AA President said:It is worrying that 3 quarters of drivers see others using mobile phones behind the wheel on some or most journeys1. This epidemic of hand held mobile phone use while driving has already cost lives and our members have demanded action. An increase in the standard motoring fixed penalty fine will help deter those who commit motoring offences including mobile phone use. AA members broadly support an increase in the level of the fixed penalty. Our members also fully support educational training as an alternative to penalty points.We are also pleased to see that at long last new powers and fines will be given to the police to tackle the top three pet hates of drivers – tailgaters, mobile phone abusers and middle lane hogs.Chief Constable Suzette Davenport ACPO lead on roads policing said:The new penalties are absolutely necessary to deal with drivers who are putting people’s lives at risk and police will not hesitate to enforce them.These measures should also act as a reminder to careless drivers that their behaviour will not be tolerated.The vast majority of drivers are law abiding, but some are still not getting the message. We said we would get tougher on those who make our roads dangerous and that is exactly what we have done.The fixed penalty for careless driving will be £100 with 3 points on the driver’s licence. The most serious examples will continue to go through court, where offenders may face higher penalties.

Are you looking to pass your driving test quickly then book your intensive driving course for manual and automatic driving lessons. Call ALBA now on 07988 767248 / 08000 842557.There are no changes to penalty levels for parking offences.Fixed penalty levels for most of these motoring offences have not increased since 2000, and are now lower than other penalties of a similar severity. In addition, raising the penalty levels for these offences offers an additional incentive for drivers to take up remedial courses which address poor driving behaviour in the longer term.The changes - which the government aim to bring into force in July this year - are being introduced following extensive public consultation with road safety groups and police forces.Related documents

Notes to editorsMost motoring fixed penalties offences will rise under the changes:

a non-endorsable (where the driver does not receive points on their licence) £30 fixed penalty notice will rise to £50

an endorsable (where points are given) £60 and non-endorsable fixed penalty notice will rise to £100

an endorsable £120 fixed penalty notice will rise to £200

the fixed penalty notice for driving with no insurance will rise from £200 to £300

Graduated fixed penalties (mainly for commercial goods and passenger carrying vehicles and including offences like drivers’ hours and overloading) and financial deposits (for drivers without a satisfactory UK address) will also increase:

a £30 non-endorsable fine will rise to £50

a £60 endorsable and non-endorsable fine will rise to £100

a £120 endorsable and non-endorsable fine will rise to £200

a £200 endorsable and non-endorsable fine will rise to £300

The consultation took place from 14 June 2012 to 5 September 2012.As with other existing fixed penalty notice offences, such as speeding, police forces will also be able to offer careless drivers the option of remedial training.Endorsable road traffic offences contribute to a significant number of casualties. For example, in 2011, excess speed contributed to 213 deaths and using a mobile phone while driving contributed to 374 road casualties.Though penalty levels will increase, penalty points will not change. Fixed penalty notices for parking, waiting and obstruction offences will also remain unchanged.1Populus interviewed 20,936 adults aged 18+ on The AA-Populus online panel between 20 and 23 August 2012. Populus is a founder member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.Roads media enquiriesPress enquiries 020 7944 3066Out of hours 020 7944 4292Public enquiries 0300 330 3000

Nissan has been forced to recall about 841,000 vehicles worldwide due to a faulty steering wheel.

Nissan said that a bolt used in the steering wheel was not screwed on properly, but that there was no danger of sudden failure.

The Japanese car manufacturer said it would recall models of the Micra, produced in Britain and Japan between 2002 and 2006 and the Cube, which was produced in Japan around the same period.

The discovery will affect about 133,869 models of the Micra in the UK. The carmaker said that it will fix the issue by tightening the bolts or replacing steering wheels entirely. So far, no accidents involving the cars have been reported, Nissan said. But drivers will notice if the steering wheel is getting loose, the company added. A Nissan Motor GB spokesman said: "Over time, the nut that holds on the steering wheel can become loose. Drivers could start notice some wobbling of the wheel and if this is ignored there is the possibility that it could come completely off." "There have been a few incidents of steering wheels becoming loose, but there have been no accidents," he added. Nissan has said that the repair would take about 15 minutes. Earlier this month, Nissan recalled 500,000 vehicles globally over a defect in passenger airbags.

Allow at least a two-second gap between you and the vehicle in front on roads carrying faster-moving traffic and in tunnels where visibility is reduced. The gap should be at least doubled on wet roads and increased still further on icy roads.

You should look and listen for ambulances, fire engines, police, doctors or other emergency vehicles using flashing blue, red or green lights and sirens or flashing headlights, or Highways Agency Traffic Officer and Incident Support vehicles using flashing amber lights.

When one approaches do not panic.

Consider the route of such a vehicle and take appropriate action to let it pass, while complying with all traffic signs. If necessary, pull to the side of the road and stop, but try to avoid stopping before the brow of a hill, a bend or narrow section of road.

Do not endanger yourself, other road users or pedestrians and avoid mounting the kerb. Do not brake harshly on approach to a junction or roundabout, as a following vehicle may not have the same view as you.

From 18 November 2012 classic and historic vehicles, those manufactured before 1 January 1960, will be exempted from the MOT test.

Classic and historic vehicles are often very well maintained by their owners and have a much lower accident and MOT failure rate than newer vehicles. The current requirement to undergo an MOT test goes over and above the obligations set out in European legislation. Following a public consultation which showed high levels of support for the proposals, vehicles manufactured before 1960 will be exempted from the MOT test from 18th November 2012 reducing costs for owners.Owners of affected vehicles will still be able to take exempt vehicles for an MOT test on a voluntary basis. If you are presented with any of these vehicles you should continue to conduct the test as for any other vehicle and apply the appropriate pass/fail criteria as set out in the Inspection Manuals.

For more info go to http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/repository/Special%20Notice%205-12.pdf

Foreign drivers must prove they have passed an appropriate driving test before getting a British licence under tough new rules announced by Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond.An inconsistency in the law meant that previously some non EU drivers were able to exchange their licence without proving that the necessary standards to drive in this country had been met.The change in law means requests to exchange driving licences from outside the EU will only be accepted if the licence holder can prove they passed a driving test in a country where the testing standards are comparable with those in Britain.Stephen Hammond said:“The UK’s roads are amongst the safest in the world, thanks in part to the rigorous standards demanded by our driving test. By closing this loophole we will not only make Britain’s roads even safer, but will help tackle fraud and level the playing field for British drivers who spend time and money learning to drive at the standard required in the UK.“It is obvious to everyone that drivers who have not been through a rigorous driving test will not be as safe as those who have. This change in the law will mean we can be sure that any foreign drivers exchanging their licence here have already passed a test of a similar standard to ours.”Licences issued by an EU stateAll driving licences issued by an EU state allow that driver to drive in any part of the EU and there is no need for them to exchange their licences. This does not apply to drivers outside Europe but arrangements are in place with 15 countries that allow drivers to exchange their licences for a Great Britain one.They do not need to take any additional driving tests as DVLA recognise that the licence they hold proves that they have already met the appropriate standards to drive in this country.Inconsistency in the lawBut because of an inconsistency in the law, some foreign drivers were able to exchange a licence with another overseas country with which DVLA have an exchange agreement, and then subsequently swap it for a Great Britain one.This meant that DVLA could not be sure that the driver had met the appropriate standards to drive in this country before exchanging their licence.The law will now make clear that the licence to be exchanged will only be issued on the basis that the driver has met the appropriate standards to drive in this country.The change in law came into force on 11 January 2013

A vehicle can be recalled by the manufacturer if it has a known safety fault.Some recalled vehicles can’t be used for the practical driving test. You need to check if your vehicle is in the tables below if you’re using for your test.Your vehicle will need to be checked and fixed before you can use it for the driving test if it’s on the list.You’ll need to take proof to your test that the vehicle has been fixed properly. The proof you bring has to be one of the following:

the actual recall letter or safety notice that has been stamped by the manufacturer or dealer

written proof from the manufacturer or a dealer (on official or headed notepaper)

Your test will be cancelled and you could lose your fee if you don’t bring the right proof.Ford Fiesta Reason for recall Vehicles affected Recall issue date DSA reference number Faulty seat belt mechanism1989 to 1990 models18 March 1996 Faulty brake hoses Models built between July 1995 and June 1996 with the following build codes: SS, ST, SJ, SU, SM, SP, TB, TR, TA, TG, TC or TK12

February 2008 DSA code: COB 8/98, 10/98, 11/98, 14/98 Right-hand engine mount stud(s) may not be fully inserted. If all 3 studs broke it could result in loss of drive to the wheels1.6 litre DV6 engine with VIN numbers in the range: WF0CXXGAJ6A23666 to WF0UXXGAJU7Y2381318

November 2008 DSA code:COB 37/2008 Fusion Reason for recall Vehicles affected Recall issue date DSA reference number Right-hand engine mount stud(s) may not be fully inserted. If all 3 studs broke it could result in loss of drive to the wheels1.6 litre DV6 engine with VIN numbers in the range: WF0CXXGAJ6A23666 to WF0UXXGAJU7Y2381318

February 2010 DSA code: COB 04/2010206 Reason for recall Vehicles affected Recall issue date DSA reference number Faulty brake linkage Models (excluding Station Wagon (SW)) with build dates between September 1998 and February 2002. All cars affected are ‘S’ registration plate up to and including ‘51’11